mandela in pretoria, south africa. the latest from his granddaughter coming up. plus just a day after historic rulings regarding same-sex marriages by the supreme court. san francisco's castro district gearing up for another big event. the heat is on today. we're starting with temperatures in the mid 60s in some of your bay area silt tease. i'll tell you who will see the triple digits, how long this heat will last and then when we might actually get another round of showers in the bay area in the summertime. a lot to talk about in your full forecast. traffic building as the sun indeed is coming up already. a hot day in store. also we have issues why you have to slow down in a couple of key spots already. right now we've got you all dialed in, well, thought you did. there you go. we got you from our san bruno cam. that is a live look over san francisco. you can see low hanging clouds as the heat gets ready to roll in on this friday eve, also known as thursday, june 27. this is "today in the bay."

5:31. thanks for joining us. i'm jon kelly. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. get ready for a nasty commute. b.a.r. "today in the bay's" christie smith is live with how riders and businesses are trying to prepare. >> reporter: in about 90 minutes b.a.r.t. workers will be trying to let riders know what's going on, what's the latest with the labor dispute. transportation leaders have already taken a step forward, basically contacting businesses. they sent out letters and lists just like this one letting them know they should think alternates, think about ride sharing, telecommuting, other things that your employees can do to get around.

this could affect clients, also lots of people who don't normally ride bavrmtd that's because the ripple effect will be an absolute traffic mess out there. word of a possible strike is spreading like wildfire. b.a.r.t.'s two largest unions authorized the strike though negotiations are still happening. that's the good news. the contract expires sunday night. hundreds of thousands of people rely on b.a.r.t. each day to get around. that means the freeway, ferries and buses could be absolutely packed in the event of the strike. on the peninsula, caltran riders say they're expecting a lot of company. >> it will make it crowded, like a can of sardines, but at least it's moving. >> reporter: ac transit is offering up a number of buses but it has a labor contract expiring also on june 30 pth. a lot of timingish use here. the metropolitan transportation commission did authorize

spending millions of dollars to help with al alternatives, spending $18.7 million for buses, $1.2 million for ferries an about $100,000 for enforcement efforts. riders saying they want a deal reached to avoid a strike. christie smith, "today in the bay." we're keeping our eye on a south bay courtroom. the man accused of kidnapping and murdering sierra lamar. he still has not entered a plea more than a year after his arrest. his plea has been postponed over and over because his defense team had technical problems and other evidence given by the prosecution. sierra lamar disappeared in march of 2012. even though her body has not yet been found, garcia torres is facing murder charges.

the man accused of stealing a luxury yacht and running it aground in pacifica is facing another hearing. a judge determined lesley gardner is mentally comment to stand trial of the theft of the yacht from the sausalito harbor. the yacht ran aground on linda mar beach hours later. his defense team says he's delusional and believed the yacht was his. we're getting conflicting reports surrounding the health of nelson mandela. for the record, this marks the 19th day the south african leader has been hospitalized for a reoccurring lung infection. "today in the bay's" marla tellez in our newsroom with the latest out of pretoria. we're hearing his family members have spoken to the media. >> that's right. one of his grand daudaughters sg he is critical but in stable condition. members of the mandela family arriving at the hospital in pretoria. they thanked everybody who

continued to show up outside the hospital there. this is the scene today where it's about 2:30 in the afternoon. every day new well wishers arrived bearing notes of love, candles and plain old comfort for the 94-year-old anti apartheid icon. overnight, supporters lighting candles. everybody seems to be tired of seeing mandela suffer. >> -- the father of the nation. without him -- i wonder how will south africa be. >> in light of all the sad news about mandela. this is mandela when he was in the bay area back in july of 1990 wrapping up his tour of the united states. he spoke to almost 60,000 people at the oakland coliseum. then he was a young 71 years old and he had just been freed from prison months earlier. a nice thing to see there.

meanwhile, our own president is in africa, specifically the republic of senegal where he's promoting democracy and business. he's there with the first lady. you can see president obama there. he's expected to visit south africa. no word on the mandela's health will change mr. obama's itinerary in any way. a brand new interview coming up from mandela's eldest daughter. we'll hear from her in about 30 minutes. >> what a great sight to see him at oakland coliseum. 5:36 right now. the people of senegal are huge fans of the first family. for their first visit, two of the country's most popular singers are now paying tribute to the obamas. ♪ mr. obama, welcome back to africa ♪ ♪ we love america >> that's how they do it over there. very, very cool. they created this to talk about the president's visit to

senegal. that short tv segment presents the news in a musical format, a little rap going on there. this time all about president obama. you can see him working hard. they spend about 50 hours every week producing their weekly segment. >> small studio there. cool. 5:37 right now. let's check the forecast with meteorologist christina loren. we better not attempt that here. >> oh, yeah. actually, we can do right here. behind me we're working with magic you may not know about. it's actually a green wall. i'll post pictures and show you what i'm talking about. check out my facebook page later. good morning down in sunnyvale. let's get right to it. this is what we're expecting. we stop the clock on your futurecast. 8:00 a.m. we'll be hugging the coastline at that point. when we stop the clock at 10:00 to 11:00, mostly clear. temperatures will really warm up. at noon today, 81 degrees, that

might be the right time to turn on the ac so your ac can keep up once we hit 93 degrees in the heat of the day. 82 bay side, 70 at the coast today. then things get even hotter. i'll show you when we'll hit the peak of this heat wave and what's coming next. we might have more showers in the forecast. unbelievable but that's what we're tracking this morning. >> along with the crazy swings in temperature over your maps, we're looking over here toward the live shot of the bay bridge where the cash lanes are starting to back up. we have the low clouds. you see them in the distance above the eastshore freeway. then after we look toward the incline of the bay bridge from the emeryville camera and we see the fog developing from the upper deck. we can show you this segment of the incline which moves smoothly. they're likely going to turn those metering lights on because of limited visibility. a smooth drive across the upper deck and the maze on the approach through oakland and

berkeley, no problem. the orange is making it soupy through the north bay southbound 101 through novato. petaluma, expect patches of thick fog as you travel across the golden gate bridge, also stuck with that from the marin side towards san francisco. not unusual. that will shift, of course, over the next few hours. as we look towards fremont, we show 880 southbound taking up the volume. you still have the speeds at the limit between the dumbarton bridge and the south bay. the volume is building. we'll show you the south bay coming up. back to you. the time is 5:39. the senate gearing up for the historic vote that could impact millions of americans. we have a live report from washington, d.c. coming up next. we hear a lot about san jose's fight to bring the a's south. new developments today that could help keep the team right where it is. details next. ♪

[ roars ] ♪ ♪ [ roars ] ♪ [ roars ] ♪ [ male announcer ] universal studios summer of survival. ♪

good thursday morning everybody. it's 5:41 right now.

this morning the senate on track to marrying a crucial vote on immigration reform. that effort could hit a wall in the house where republicans are definitely in control there. "today in the bay's" tracie potts live on capitol hill this morning. tracie, we're hearing the senate could vote on immigration as early as today, correct? >> reporter: you're right, jon. we could see that vote in just a few hours. a final vote but only in the senate which is only half the story. you mentioned the house which is controlled by republicans. they don't plan to vote on that same plan at all. republican leaders saying they're working on their own immigration bill. that could hit a roadblock when it comes in from the senate if, in fact, it passes. it looks like this bill is gaining momentum on the senate side. they've added provisions about border security to apiece republicans who are skeptical about this plan. they're adding 20,000 new officers at the border, 700 miles offensing and other things like making sure the e verification system for

employers kicks in before the country starts handing out more green cards. that got more republicans on board again on the senate side. house republicans not so keen on all of that. cost is another concern. by adding all that, they added an estimated $46 billion to this immigration reform plan. they had only planned to spend another $6 billion. that's a lot of added cost. some republicans this morning are questioning that as well. bottom line, it looks like it could sail through the senate maybe as soon as this morning, and the more republicans who get on board, the more pressure for the house to do the same, jon. >> this is far from over. tracie potts, thank you very much for the update. new this morning, the american executive held captive by his own employees for almost a week is finally free we're told. chip starnes was safely released this morning from a factory on the outskirts of beijing and is now in a hotel. rumors were swirl that the plant

was closing and the workers were going to be laid off. starnes told nbc news yesterday his company plans to keep the factory in china open. a war of words continues this morning over the nsa leaker. the u.s. now pressuring russia to hand over edward snowden. this is new video this morning from outside the moscow airport where snowden is believed to be hiding out. just about an hour ago, a flight to cuba did pull away from the airport. we're being told snowden was not on board. russia says snowden is, quote, in transit and is has not officially entered their country. yesterday defense secretary chuck hagel asking russia to do the right thing and hand snowden over. hagel says snowden has broken the law and has damaged the country. later this evening pride week kicking off in san francisco's castro district. tonight at the w the big kickoff party will take place. pride organizers planning for bigger attendance than usual because of yesterday's supreme

court rulings. celebrations in the castro after the historic rulings went well into this morning. deejays had the music flowing as thousands of people spent the night dancing in the castro. the party started at 6:00 p.m., included lots of kicking, hugging, celebrations. a lot of people said they had been waiting a long time for this day. >> we worked so long for this, i can't help just to laugh. >> did you ever think you were not going to win this thing? >> yeah. when i went to bed last night i was scared. >> my girlfriend is brazilian, and i would love to marry her but that would be a really bad idea until today. >> police say the crowd was well behaved and obviously very positive. they were excited. >> probably a little humid out there as well for all the partying, kind of a wet night, i would imagine. christina loren is back. hot temperatures. you say you're bringing in a

little weather whiplash. >> that's right. but we'll get rid of some of the humidity so it won't feel that as sticky. that makes the true temperature feel even warmer. today we'll be more with the traditional dry heat that we see in the bay area. high pressure is doing its job. this is evidence of that at 5:46 this morning. look at this. we talk about how high pressure compress it is moisture out in our atmosphere. we are actually seeing that marine layer forced right to the surface. it's been lowering over the past couple hours. so visibility over your open water bridges is going to be a problem this morning. give yourself extra time. for you all morning long. otherwise looking pretty good. we don't have any thick valley fog even after the showers that kicked up here. we picked up a lot of unprecedented rain in the north bay, smashing rainfall record with two inches. we needed it. 62 degrees in livermore, 63 in san jose. good morning to you. the moisture moves to the north. the actual jet stream is going to creep to the north as this big ridge of high pressure comes

in and boosts it to the north. high pressure is building in strong, and as we head through the next couple days, we'll start to see the offshore flow. the winds actually negate the marine influence that keeps us so comfortable in the bay area. we cut off the marine influence and temperatures will soar, not just yet. we won't get into the peak of it until sunday, monday and tuesday. today a great day to hit the beach. 2:00 p.m. 75 degrees. the warm sands of santa cruz, going to be a beautiful day to get out there. make sure you have the sunscreen ready to go though. as we head through the day today, temperatures, gilroy, 93 degrees, 92 for livermore. meanwhile 72, that's the place to be in san francisco. monday into tuesday, these are the days you really want a bull's eye if you don't have excessive heat in your house. we'll start mild on tuesday morning with plenty of 70s to start the day. go ahead and plan on finding that heat relief, whether it's getting out to the mall or the

movies. this is the kind of heat that gets very dangerous when you're talking about triple digit plus in the bay area. mike, over to you. >> we'll take it over here in the south bay where we're looking at a typical build for this morning. looking at a smooth drive north 101. shows slowing speeds coming down to about 55. also north 87 you saw it change from yellow to green. 60 miles an hour heading into downtown. 880 through the construction zone around stevens creek, there's activity there. minor slowing. not a major concern. we're looking toward the east bay. the tri-valley in particular we have a mild build, still holding on around the dublin interchange, westbound 580 continues to build. the traffic flow heading towards the isabel exchange towards vallecitos. just in, we have a report of a crash west highway 4 around a

street as you come through antioch. this is right around where the backup starts anyway. we have report of a crash, a big rig and another car, sounds like they smashed into the k rail. if they have to close the lane, we'll warn you about that. quick look across the bay. foster city side. watch the low clouds because they are around the east bay and the north bay. back to you. thank you very much. today marks a major milestone for the electric car industry. did you know it's happening in the bay area. the president and ceo of mitts gish she north america meeting with chuck reed and other state and local leaders at san jose city hall this morning, expecting to announce 50 all electric mitsubishi mievs. the deployment is the largest of its kind in the entire nation. oakland's bid to keep the

a's could get a much needed boost. the city commission will review a settlement that will end a legal dispute over howard terminal that would likely free up 50 acres of waterfront land for a ball park. the owner says the organization is closing in on a five-year lease extension with the city that would keep the team in the coliseum through the 2018 season. for the first time ever the bay area will play host to the first female golfers in the work. u.s. open women's will be played at san jose's cordevalle golf club, the first time it will be held in california for more than 30 years. former secretary of state, current stanford professor and new augusta national member condoleezza rice will serve as the honorary chair of the tournament. >> very appropriate. i like that one. it is 5:50 right now.4

thousands of people placing their bets trying to guess the name of the future king or queen of england. we'll tell you the top contenders. wall street's strange reaction to bad news and things from space all ahead in business and tech.

how is this for putting your money where your baby is. like all things royal, people are now taking bets on what the name will be for the future king or queen of england. william hill -- that's not the name anybody is talking about. that's one ofrkz the world's biggest online betting sites says it's already received about $30,000 in bets. that amount expected to go way up as the mid july due date nears. leading the odds, alexandra at 5-2, charlotte, diana and elizabeth close behind followed by victoria. sounds like betters leaning

heavily toward a young daughter. william hill hoping the family will stay tight lipid. back in 1982 when the prince was born, the company lost big money because that name was actually leaked three days before the birth. >> we will see. everybody is watching. 5:54. mountain view has a particular announcement. >> it is a little peculiar. the search for extra ter rest yell intelligence and paypal are coming up with a system to pay for things in space, s.eti is a very serious scientific effort to listen to sound waves from outer space. the announcement that is,eti could call it a publicity stunt.

in exchange for seti support for new galactic money, paypal helping seti raise money. they raised, yes, you see it there, $60 so far. today's press conference announcing this money system and the fund-raiser will be hosted by buzz aldrin in mountain view. other news, wall street has been very happy lately because we've had several bits of data showing the american economy is not growing as fast as hoped. that's right. the stock market went up because the economy is puttering. investors like bad news because bad news makes them think the fed will delay ending its easy money policy. remember jon and laura, the stock market is not the economy, the economy is not the stock market. in fact, in this case they're direct opposites of each other. >> breaking it down for us, scott. always appreciate it. 5:55 right now. christina loren is back talking about a scorcher coming our way this weekend. >> it is going to be hot.

i don't know about you two, but i thought yesterday was hot. i had to use my ac in campbell. this morning we're starting so mild that we'll see temperatures even warmer. 65 in sunnyvale, 62 in san jose. high pressure doing its work to really clear things out even earlier than yesterday. here is where we're working. today, 81 dreels at noon inland. that means if you work outside, grab the water bottle, stay hydrated. let's take a look at your morning drive and see how that's shaping up with our own mike inouye. >> good morning. shaping up pretty much as you expect. north 101 north of 680/280 interchange, a smooth drive here northbound with the headlights coming toward us. on the maps, that's the only spot with real slowing because of the volume of traffic. we have a crash reported north 17 right around camden avenue. early reports of a crash, no other details from chp. slowing on the southbound side. that's pretty typical again.

we'll watch for updates and i'll share those with you. live look outside showing the north bay, southbound 101 with the headlines through the curve. there is fog for the north. keep that in mind. >> thanks so much. 5:57. we continue to up date you on the health of nelson mandela this morning. marla tellez will have a live update next.

right now at 6:00, nelson mandela's condition goes from bad to worse overnight. we'll take you to south africa as an anxious nation waits to hear word about the health of its hero. will a booming b.a.r.t. strike bring chaos to your morning commute? christie smith will try to have a few answers in a live report. supreme celebrations all day

and almost all through the night in the castro. did the revelry get out of control? if you thought yesterday was hot, wait till you see where we are headed. the hottestt$ñ weather of the y so far right into the dog days of summer as we head into the weekend. i'll let you know how long this stretch of hot weather will last. that's coming up in your forecast. a little escape from the heat and i guess it's going that way. we'll talk about the effect on your morning commute and the changes i'm seeing right now. right now we're all seeing a lot of clouds out there. underneath those clouds, that is the city of san francisco. going to be another hot one out there with some low-hanging marshmallows for us on this thursday, june 27. this is "today in the bay." good morning to you and